The HAL Audio System

Introduction

HAL is more than just another DSP drag-and-drop system. It has revolutionized system design and installation.

HAL is an expert in room combining, paging and distributed audio systems. This groundbreaking architecture is dimensions beyond any solution in any industry. HAL easily guides even novice users through what used to be complex tasks in just minutes. No intricate matrix mixing or presets are required for room combining and paging. No virtual wiring is required to distribute pages and background music to multiple, even hundreds of zones.

In addition, the HAL Multiprocessor and Halogen™ software check the status, location, CAT 5 wiring integrity, and that audio is flowing in all peripheral devices, so you know your system is properly connected and ready to go. Does your DSP troubleshoot the cable install for you and offer a “Get on the Plane” indicator that shows you that the installers have truly finished their job? It should.

Halogen software includes Ethernet control support for third-party control systems such as AMX®, Crestron® and Stardraw Control™, including well-documented examples. Standard TCP/IP set and get ASCII text messages control levels, selectors, presets and toggle software actions. Since the same Halogen software code runs on both Windows® and within HAL hardware, third-party control developers can test all their code using only the Halogen Windows software. Use only software for complete system design and validation. Buy the hardware only when the install date arrives and completely skip needing it early solely for control system programming verification. Standard TCP/IP set and get ASCII text messages control levels, selectors, presets and toggle software actions.

Analog audio has always offered “plug it in, it works!” functionality. With HAL’s modern DSP system, finally digital audio offers “plug it in, it works”. Without IP anything, without DHCP servers, without unblocking ports, without firmware mismatches, without hours (or days?) of bad cable termination or swapped cable-pull troubleshooting, and other troubles caused by Ethernet and other supposedly modern digital audio and control transports.

HAL Hardware

Four HAL Multiprocessors provide various audio I/O and control options for large, medium and small installations.

HAL1x

HAL1x supports 16 in x 16 out audio, which may be increased up to 512 in x 512 out by adding up to 32 daisy-chained Expanders to a single HAL1x. Add a few to hundreds of more mic inputs with AM Automixers.

HAL2

HAL2 supports 18 in x 18 out audio, of which 2 x 2 come from AES3 on XLR connections.

HAL3s

HAL3s supports 6 in x 10 out audio. The HAL3s replaces the HAL3 with mic input capability, an extra RAD port, and better dynamic range for the same price. The HAL3s is shipping now!

The DR3 has three behaviors: Single Level & List of Toggles/Commands, List of Levels for either multizone volume control and/or input source mixing, and Single Level plus Selector.

The DR4 Logic I/O Expander adds more logic to any HAL for external switches and pots, and fits in a 1U rack:

8 Logic Inputs, Internal 5V pull-up.

8 Logic Outputs for relay drive, LED or logic level output.

8 Analog Control ADC inputs for potentiometers.

6 IR Ports for IR2 wall sensors.

The DR5 Switch Controller adds more logic to any HAL, accepting external switches and driving LEDs on a room combine panel. It fits in a standard US electrical box.

New! The DR6 is a fully customizable touchscreen remote for the HAL family. It supports multiple pages or tabs and any set of levels, toggles, selectors and/or commands on the 7-inch LCD display. Shipping now!

Ethernet, RAD and DR Cable Lengths

The maximum length for CAT 5e cable between ethernet devices is 100 meters.

Shielded CAT 5e between a HAL or EXP and a RAD (carrying 4 channels of digital audio) can run up to 150 meters.

Shielded CAT 5e between a HAL or EXP and a DR (carrying control information) can run up to 300 meters.

It is possible to extend these lengths by increasing distance between the HAL and Expanders. Up to 32 Expanders can daisy-chain from a single HAL, and each can be up to 100 meters apart. For greater distance, off-the shelf Gbit Ethernet media converters are supported. Multimode fiber can run up to 2 kilometers, and singlemode fiber can run up to 12 kilometers.

Halogen Software Introduction

The Halogen software application is your home for designing, configuring, and controlling your HAL audio system. Halogen's easy-to-use graphical user interface simplifies the design and configuration process. With the free download, your system can be designed before any hardware is ordered!

The Halogen software manages global tasks such as discovering, connecting to, and applying configurations to HAL devices. The interface is divided into two main sections: the Hardware Workspace and the Processing Workspace.

Halogen helps with the first step, determining which of the HAL Multiprocessors is best to build your system.

Halogen Hardware Workspace

The Hardware Workspace is where you specify, configure, and troubleshoot the physical hardware components of your audio system.

Notice that Halogen separates the hardware view from the processing view of your audio system. A key benefit of this separation is the flexibility it provides when configuring the system's various inputs and outputs. For example, suppose you have a RAD2 in your audio system. You drag the RAD2 device into the Hardware Workspace but then go to the Processing Workspace to configure the RAD2's line input and mic input. This separation of hardware from processing allows you to work with each input and output individually instead of having to work with the hardware device as a single entity. It also allows you to focus on hardware in one place and audio flow and processing in another place—simplifying your job as a result. Brilliant!

As you may have noticed, the Hardware Workspace and the Processing Workspace have similar layouts. On the right is the actual workspace itself in which you create your system. Associated with each workspace is a palette of objects on the left, and at the top a toolbar specific to the workspace. To add an entity to your audio system, you drag one or more objects from the palette to the workspace.

New! Halogen 6.0 Event Manager

The Event Manager adds a real time clock to any HAL that triggers events using time-of-day. Reset your system every night at midnight. Recall the traditional church service preset each Sunday at 8 AM, and the contemporary preset at 9:40. Or mute all HAL audio at 11:00 PM, then at 11:01 turn off the power amps using HAL’s relay or logic output port with your SurgeX — no presets needed.

Each event created can drive either a Toggle, Command or Selector action. Toggle and Selector events support custom start and end times — they have duration. Toggles are displayed as checkboxes. Selectors are two-position radio buttons: event Active or Inactive. Command events are momentary, have no duration, and are useful when recalling consecutive events one after the other. For example, Tuesday Bingo, Wednesday ladies night and Saturday pancake breakfast where no end time is needed.

Events support a variety of recurrence settings such as weekly, daily, specific days, times, or even one-time or manually triggered.

Select the time zone & city for the job site, and HAL automatically adjusts for daylight savings if needed. Set HAL’s time manually, sync it to your computer’s clock during set up, or when there’s an Internet connection on site, point the HAL’s clock to an NTP (Network Time Protocol) server. When offline in Halogen, the PC’s time zone and clock drive the Event timer, but the HAL’s time zone and clock are used when connected live.

An event’s value (active or inactive) is read-only and is controlled by the clock’s time matching the event’s start or end time. Each event offers a linkable enable if your system design requires sometimes skipping events. Each event also has a manual trigger for both active and inactive. Link to these triggers to allow end users or external control systems (AMX/Crestron) to undo an Event that’s fired but not needed or already in progress. These manual triggers also permit event troubleshooting and testing and are read-write. This allows linking to DR, HAL web page or 3rd-party TCP/IP controls for end users to manually activate an event in addition to the clock activating the same event. At the same time, triggers automatically driven from the clock also push event values to the linked parameters. This means event indication on web pages, DR remotes and control screen always show event status.

Sort events by name or in time order. During commissioning, temporarily disable all events by suspending the clock entirely. An auto-generated text description of each event helps humans understand what will happen next time the event triggers.

Halogen Version History

New features in Halogen 6.0

Added the Event Manager in the Processing Workspace for real-time clock scheduling of actions.

Added the Generate List button in the Hardware Workspace to quickly generate an Excel price template of the existing hardware in the open Halogen configuration file.

The PAGER1 Talk button now supports toggle behavior (in addition to momentary): push and release once to talk/page, push and release again to stop talking/paging.

In Halogen’s Configuration Notes dialog, pushing the Insert Date & Time button on a connected HAL inserts the HAL’s time, not the PC’s (which is what happens when disconnected).

Bugs fixes in Halogen 6.0

Holding down Levels in Web Control pages when using Android devices had strange behaviors once you held long enough to reach accelerated mode. They used to either jump around randomly or stick to the top or bottom. (6636)

Once Levels in Web Control pages begin scrolling up or down, moving your finger even slightly stopped the scrolling. (6636)

Command links from a DR5 to a DR6 command button were only turning on, never off. (6616)

Selectors on DR6 pages did not update correctly when stored to command presets. (6613)

The currently selected control in the DR3 LCD was not updating to display a newly activated link when using presets to change which link the DR3 display shows. (5375)

Sometimes, web page images in configuration files that were updated to new firmware would go missing. (6608)

When Windows video scaling was set above 100%, Level indicators were not updating and tracking each other. (6626)

On networks with managed switches that refuse all link local IP Address requests, the HAL was endlessly rebooting. HAL and Halogen always use and require link local IP Addresses to establish a connection. (6040)

Copying and pasting a DR4 logic input configured as a selector were being lost once saved and reopened. (6622)

DR2 and DR3 LCD displays were being slightly truncated on the right side. (6625)

When displaying read-only controls on a DR6, the controls were erroneously allowing activation from the DR6. (6565)

Known issues in Halogen 6.0 (only the first 5 bullets below are new since the 5.0.2 release)

Only while disconnected/offline, web pages with manyselectors sometimes do not all get re-drawn. Refreshing the browser - sometimes multiple times - can fix this. But it works properly and as expected on a live connected HAL. (6726)

In configurations containing the Distributed Program Bus, when pasting a new room combine block while having a room’s Selector block open, the new selector will not have the correct selection highlighted. Toggle the newly created room’s selector to fix. (6516)

The Control Page Designer’s alignment tool does not properly align a control and its label. Manually(6469)

The EXP2x erroneously permits more than one Locate indicator to be on simultaneously.(6434)

The EXP2x can display the wrong status in either Halogen or Dante Controller after a swap and sometimes after a firmware update. A restart of Halogen and/or the EXP2x(es) is the workaround. (6424 & 6602)

DR6 Workspace Labels and control labels using the italic text style can get visually chopped off. A workaround is to use non-italic text.

Sometimes the “Dante Booting” message erroneously appears above an EXP2x after Disconnecting from HAL1x, although the network is working fine and not booting. (6524)

In Windows XP the bottom meter or two in the EXP2x (Dante) dialog are not displayed at all – no segments turn on, although audio may be flowing just fine. (6417)

When pasting or moving blocks or wires so the wire ends align properly with block I/O nodes, sometimes the wires do not connect to the nodes. Workaround is to select the dashed-red wire end and move it off, then back on to the node. (6308)

Zone page Active status does not turn off when a zone is removed from a Scenario during an active page while linked to a toggle control. A save and re-open, an Apply or a re-Apply fixes this.

The Pager1 Talk button cannot be overridden in Halogen like the other read-only (Logic) I/O controls.

Sometimes, the on-screen GEQ sliders get stuck and stop moving, although the displayed graph and audio both update properly. We’ve been unable to reproduce this.

When two Web Control Pages contain the same Toggle control that both link to a read-only control (e.g., a HAL Logic Input), clicking the toggle on one page briefly toggles the other web page’s control even though neither web control is able to change the state – even temporarily.

After putting a Connected HAL’s computer to sleep, the Connected HAL remains in the In Use state for 10 to 15 minutes. Other computers on the network cannot connect. Workarounds are: Disconnect Halogen or unplug the Ethernet cable to the HAL before sleeping the computer or reboot the HAL.

If you have the older HAL1 model (non-HAL1x version) AND you use one or more EXP1 devices with it, DO NOT upgrade to Halogen 5.0.x The Expansion Bus audio stops working, although some, but not all indicators appear to work; yet audio won't work. The fix is to continue to use Halogen 4.1.1. You can successfully Rollback your HAL1 system from 5.0.x to 4.1.1. Remember that you can run two versions of Halogen on one computer, one at a time. See this.

HAL & Halogen software

When Web Controls User Access is enabled in a version prior to 5.0.x and the configuration file is updated to 5.0.x, HAL would fault if:

The secured user (Default) was deleted.

A DR6 and additional control pages were added.

The resulting configuration was applied to HAL.

Changing the Control Type of an EXP3x Logic Output port was always modifying the first port, not the port being changed. Once linked, this caused logic ports to toggle together.

The Paging Manager was permitting more than the allowed maximum of 20 Scenarios to be assigned to a PAGER1.

Starting a new wire on a branch and ending on a block input caused Halogen to crash.

In Windows 7, using the Medium - 125% or Larger - 150% settings for Control Panel > Display scale (e.g., Make it easier to read what's on your screen), freezes control windows while live with HAL devices. Keep the Display scaling set to Smaller-100% (default).

Known issues in Halogen 5.0.2

Controls in the DR6 viewer and the Control Page Designer (CPD) that are linked to read-only controls do not always display the correct read-only value expected.

DR6 Workspace and control labels using Italic text can get visually chopped off. A workaround is to use non-italic text.

Sometimes the “Dante Booting” message erroneously appears above an EXP2x after Disconnecting from HAL1x, although the network is working fine and not booting.

In Windows XP* the bottom meter or two in the EXP2x (Dante) dialog are not displayed at all – no segments turn on, although audio may be flowing just fine.

When pasting or moving blocks or wires so the wire ends align properly with block I/O nodes, sometimes the wires do not connect to the nodes. Workaround is to select the dashed-red wire end and move it off, then back on to the node.

Zone page Active status does not turn off when a zone is removed from a Scenario during an active page while linked to a toggle control. A save and re-open, an Apply or a re-Apply fixes this.

The Pager1 Talk button cannot be overridden in Halogen like the other read-only (Logic) I/O controls.

Sometimes, the on-screen GEQ sliders get stuck and stop moving, although the displayed graph and audio both update properly. We’ve been unable to reproduce this.

When two Web Control Pages contain the same Toggle control that both link to a read-only control (e.g., a HAL Logic Input), clicking the toggle on one page briefly toggles the other web page’s control even though neither web control is able to change the state – even temporarily.

After putting a Connected HAL’s computer to sleep, the Connected HAL remains in the In Use state for 10 to 15 minutes. Other computers on the network cannot connect. Workarounds are: Disconnect Halogen or unplug the Ethernet cable to the HAL before sleeping the computer or reboot the HAL.

Note: If you have the older HAL1 model (non-HAL1x version) AND you use one or more EXP1 devices with it, DO NOT upgrade to Halogen 5.0. The Expansion Bus audio stops working, although some, but not all indicators appear to work; yet audio won't work. The fix is to continue to use Halogen 4.1.1. You can successfully Rollback your HAL1 system from 5.0 to 4.1.1. Remember that you can run two versions of Halogen on one computer, one at a time. See this.

New features in Halogen 5.0.1

The Halogen startup dialog now permits closing the application, without taking the time to open a file before doing so.

Bugs fixes in Halogen 5.0.1

4.1.x configuration files with Control Page Access enabled would not update to Halogen 5.0 correctly and would not open.

The DR6 was getting stuck Initializing when sending many pages to it, even though the DR6 Resources were below 100%.

Halogen required a restart after applying DR6 designs containing 9 or more pages with many elements per page.

Sometimes, un-assigning a DR6 page from a user did not remove it from the DR6 correctly. There were also other bugs fixed related to image handling when the unsecured pages or users were deleted.

The Control Page Designer only checked IP Addresses when it was first opened. Now it always looks for changes in IP Addresses so Previews and QR Codes work more consistently as the network changes dynamically.

Logic outputs on the EXP3x in files created before Halogen 5.0 had trouble after changing modes when two or more logic ports were linked together. This also meant that ports 2 through 8 were improperly being set to output logic port 1’s current value.

Using the same image more than once on a single DR6 page were being rendered improperly.

Halogen sometimes used to crash after changing Control Page element properties, then viewing a different Page.

Themes could not be changed after a Command is added to a Page, then the DR6 Viewer page being viewed is toggled.

Deleting Users from a DR6 caused an occasional DR6 crash.

Level up/down button colors were not updating correctly on the DR6 Viewer.

Reordering DR6 pages while Connected would sometimes not work correctly.

Fixed the accuracy of seconds timeout for the DR6 auto log out time.

When no unsecured user was assigned to a DR6, logging out would still display a secured page.

DR6 backlight min & max settings were not updating until the screen was physically touched.

Deleting a logged in DR6 user while Connected did not clear the DR6 screen.

Some special characters (e.g., “ and ‘) in Control Page control names were disabling page links and causing other strange chaos.

Only initially, the zoom functions on the Control Page Designer were not working.

The new DR3 control dialog limited the total number of controls to 19 instead of 20.

The EXP2x was incorrectly reporting to Dante Controller that the EXP2x’s internal clock could be synced to an external clock, though it cannot.

Updating configurations with AM mixers connected to EXP1x devices and a RAD from Halogen 4.1.1 to 5.0 caused the AM audio to be muted until rewiring the AM audio.

The Control Page Designer’s Image Width & Height controls were not initially working correctly.

Known issues in Halogen 5.0.1

Only if you upgrade a Halogen file from 4.1.1:
If you delete a (Page Access) User in Halogen 5.0.1, but the User was created in 4.1.1, it makes it impossible to Apply the 5.0.1 file to a live HAL. Halogen crashes (exception error) and the HAL reboots until you manually re-power the HAL. The fix is to return to the 4.1.1 version of the file, delete all Users (no Page Access), update the file to 5.0.1 and re-create the Users in 5.0.1. A fix is coming soon.

Controls in the DR6 viewer and the Control Page Designer (CPD) that are linked to read-only controls do not always display the correct read-only value expected.

DR6 Workspace and control labels using Italic text can get visually chopped off. A workaround is to use non-italic text.

Sometimes the “Dante Booting” message erroneously appears above an EXP2x after Disconnecting from HAL1x, although the network is working fine and not booting.

In Windows XP* the bottom meter or two in the EXP2x (Dante) dialog are not displayed at all – no segments turn on, although audio may be flowing just fine.

When pasting or moving blocks or wires so the wire ends align properly with block I/O nodes, sometimes the wires do not connect to the nodes. Workaround is to select the dashed-red wire end and move it off, then back on to the node.

Zone page Active status does not turn off when a zone is removed from a Scenario during an active page while linked to a toggle control. A save and re-open, an Apply or a re-Apply fixes this.

The Pager1 Talk button cannot be overridden in Halogen like the other read-only (Logic) I/O controls.

Sometimes, the on-screen GEQ sliders get stuck and stop moving, although the displayed graph and audio both update properly. We’ve been unable to reproduce this.

When two Web Control Pages contain the same Toggle control that both link to a read-only control (e.g., a HAL Logic Input), clicking the toggle on one page briefly toggles the other web page’s control even though neither web control is able to change the state – even temporarily.

After putting a Connected HAL’s computer to sleep, the Connected HAL remains in the In Use state for 10 to 15 minutes. Other computers on the network cannot connect. Workarounds are: Disconnect Halogen or unplug the Ethernet cable to the HAL before sleeping the computer or reboot the HAL.

Note: If you have the older HAL1 model (non-HAL1x version) AND you use one or more EXP1 devices with it, DO NOT upgrade to Halogen 5.0. The Expansion Bus audio stops working, although some, but not all indicators appear to work; yet audio won't work. The fix is to continue to use Halogen 4.1.1. You can successfully Rollback your HAL1 system from 5.0 to 4.1.1. Remember that you can run two versions of Halogen on one computer, one at a time. See this.

Renamed Web Controls to Control Pages which includes both HTML web page and DR6 control pages. A single Control Page Designer dialog permits custom page designs to be applied to HAL-served web pages, DR6 screens or both.

Only output node number one on the PEQ Multichannel block was shown as yellow when Bypass All was enabled.

The upper left number in the AEC DSP block is not entirely visible (obscured) when using more than 99 AEC blocks.

Known issues in Halogen 5.0

You must disable 4.1.1 Web Controls' User Access BEFORE updating configuration files from 4.1.1 to 5.0. Otherwise, Halogen 5.0 will not be able to open the updated file. Workarounds:

(a) If you still have your 4.1.1 file, using Halogen 4.1.1 disable User Access (under Web Controls) and save the file. Then open the file using Halogen 5.0 and enable Page Access (under Control Page Designer).
Helpful links: Installing multiple simultaneous versions of Halogen & Intro to Page Access in Halogen 5.0 (starting at 9:45 in the video)
(b) Rane will update any Halogen file for you. Email either your old 4.1.1 file, or any 5.0 configuration files that don't open to halogen@rane.com and we'll update it and email it back.
Sorry for the trouble. A fix is on the way.

If you place too many controls/elements on a single DR6, the display remains static when applied to a live DR6. It does nothing. (remember – less is more). One easy workaround when using a HAL1x with a DR6 with this issue is to move the DR6 from the HAL1x's port, to any available EXP's RAD or DR port.

Zone page Active status does not turn off when a zone is removed from a Scenario during an active page while linked to a toggle control. A save and re-open, an Apply or a re-Apply fixes this.

The Pager1 Talk button cannot be overridden in Halogen like the other read-only (Logic) I/O controls.

Workspace Labels are not Aligned properly.

In Windows XP* the bottom meter or two in the EXP2x (Dante) dialog are not displayed at all – no segments turn on, although audio may be flowing.

When a DR6 has no unsecured pages assigned and it is in single button (not tab) mode, the visible page does not clear after a Logout. Fix is to always have one unsecured page assigned – even a blank one.

DR6 backlight settings do not take effect on the device until after each unit's screen is physically touched.

Reordering DR6 pages while live may not update the order on the DR6 – although the software preview order appears correctly. Unplug and re-plug the DR6 to fix.

When using more than one of the same Image file on a single DR6 screen, scaling the image differently creates rendering problems. Fix is to use unique names for the same image.

The DR6 auto logout time is a few to several seconds longer than the displayed time. The longer the setting, the more the error in seconds.

When pasting or moving blocks or wires so the wire ends align properly with block I/O nodes, sometimes the wires do not connect to the nodes. Workaround is to select the dashed-red wire end and move it off, then back on to the node.

Sometimes, the on-screen GEQ sliders get stuck and stop moving, although the displayed graph and audio both update properly. We’ve been unable to reproduce this.

When two Web Control Pages contain the same Toggle control that both link to a read-only control (e.g., a HAL Logic Input), clicking the toggle on one page briefly toggles the other web page’s control even though neither web control is able to change the state – even temporarily.

After putting a Connected HAL’s computer to sleep, the Connected HAL remains in the In Use state for 10 to 15 minutes. Other computers on the network cannot connect. Workarounds are: Disconnect Halogen or unplug the Ethernet cable to the HAL before sleeping the computer or reboot the HAL.

If you have the older HAL1 model (non-HAL1x version) AND you use one or more EXP1 devices with it, DO NOT upgrade to Halogen 5.0. The Expansion Bus audio stops working, although some, but not all indicators appear to work; yet audio won't work. The work around is to continue to use Halogen 4.1.1. You can successfully Rollback your HAL1 system from 5.0 to 4.1.1 Halogen and your system will work fine using 4.1.1.

After the first login to secure Web Control pages, the home page, not the originating URL, was presented.

The HAL gateway could not be deleted unless an existing IP Address on the gateway’s subnet was present.

To add a new static IP Address or gateway required two clicks of the Add button.

The HAL1x relay output was not toggling when driven by a preset.

Changing the case of Web Control page names was causing occasional page not found errors.

Wall and preset changes in very large configuration files were updating the hardware and audio quickly, but the software screen update was slow causing corrupt configuration files when saving before the screen caught up.

When updating a configuration from 4.0.1 to 4.1, selector links to Paging Station Scenarios were get updated incorrectly – the number of selectors was doubling.

When the Windows Firewall is not present (not installed), cryptic Halogen messages during initial installation were confusing although no problem was actually occurring.

Web Controls User Access dialog was not resetting to Off when a new Halogen configuration is opened.

Web Controls User Access did not work when the HAL date/time clock was not set correctly.

Known issues in Halogen 4.1

When pasting or moving blocks or wires so the wire ends align properly with block I/O nodes, sometimes the wires do not connect to the nodes. Workaround is to select the dashed-red wire end and move it off, then back on to the node.

The Pager1 Talk button cannot be overridden in Halogen like the other read-only (Logic) I/O controls.

Zone Page Active status does not turn off when a zone is removed from a scenario when the active status is linked to a toggle control.

Sometimes, the on-screen GEQ sliders get stuck and stop moving, although the displayed graph and audio both update properly. We’ve been unable to reproduce this.

When two Web Control Pages contain the same Toggle control that both link to a read-only control (e.g., a HAL Logic Input), clicking the toggle on one page briefly toggles the other web page’s control even though neither web control is able to change the state – even temporarily.

After putting a Connected HAL’s computer to sleep, the Connected HAL remains in the In Use state for 10 to 15 minutes. Other computers on the network cannot connect. Workarounds are: Disconnect Halogen or unplug the Ethernet cable to the HAL before sleeping the computer or reboot the HAL.

Improved the overall speed and performance of dozens of operations that were notoriously slow, and updated the progress meter which was often stuck or disappeared before operations were complete. Operations such as opening large Halogen files, moving the Birdseye zoom around in large files, opening the HW Controls tab containing many devices, adding / removing nodes or the 11th wall in large room combine blocks are faster.

Added support for the HAL3s.

Processing Workspace

Changed from using names to numbers in the Workspace Label and Wire Tag color selection dialog.

Improved the All Presets dialog by allowing it to resize to a smaller minimum size and by allowing custom resizing of the Active Presets panel.

Changed the default Threshold on Compressors to -20 dB (from -40)

Made all three Processing Workspace Tabs accessible at Halogen’s minimum screen resolution. The tabs names were shortened to I/O, DSP & HW.

Adjusted the zoom level on the Fit button for better zooming in large systems.

Hardware Workspace

Adjusted the zoom level on the Fit button for better zooming in large systems.

Bug fixes in Halogen 4.1

The Distance and Temperature fields in the Distance Delay block were not updating when typing in numeric values, although the delay distance and temperature were being set to the typed values correctly. The displayed values were not updating.

The Mic gain control in the RAD16 input block was being initialized improperly. It wrongly permitted adjusting Line gain.

The processing map position was not reset to center when creating a new configuration or opening an existing configuration. This would cause problems in viewing an existing configuration on opening or positioning new blocks and wires.

Room Combine wall states were not displayed correctly in Halogen (although the walls work) when linking read-only (logic input switches) to walls.

Adding a branch wire to an existing wire, then deleting it sometimes crashed Halogen.

Very occasionally when the HAL’s Notes file is empty, it was impossible to connect Halogen to a live HAL.

The Delay Max value was not properly saved when changed immediately after being disconnected from a live HAL.

Copying multiple Wire Tags to the clipboard, then pasting them sometimes caused a crash. This had something to do with the order the objects in the clipboard were selected.

RAD Labels were not being generated for RADs in EXPs that are after an EXP7 AEC Expander in the Expansion Bus.

The “150 Room Processors Max” indicator was not being displayed below the Conference Room Combine block when exceeding the maximum number of Room Processors.

Known issues in Halogen 4.1

When pasting or moving blocks or wires so the wire ends align properly with block I/O nodes, sometimes the wires do not connect to the nodes. Workaround is to select the dashed-red wire end and move it off, then back on to the node.

The PAGER1 Talk button cannot be overridden in Halogen like the other read-only (Logic) I/O controls.

Zone Page Active status does not turn off when a zone is removed from a scenario when the active status is linked to a toggle control.

Sometimes, the on-screen GEQ sliders get stuck and stop moving, although the displayed graph and audio both update properly. We’ve been unable to reproduce this.

When two Web Control Pages contain the same Toggle control that both link to a read-only control (e.g., a HAL Logic Input), clicking the toggle on one page briefly toggles the other web page’s control even though neither web control is able to change the state – even temporarily.

After putting a Connected HAL’s computer to sleep, the Connected HAL remains in the In Use state for 10 to 15 minutes. Other computers on the network cannot connect. Workarounds are: Disconnect Halogen or unplug the Ethernet cable to the HAL before sleeping the computer or reboot the HAL.

Fixes in Halogen 4.0.1

When the HAL4 input is set to dynamic mic or condenser mic, typing a numeric gain value in resulted in an incorrect gain setting. The rainbow control and up/down arrows worked correctly.

The HAL4 DSP Resource was not 0% for empty configuration files.

Adding an EXP3x Zone Processor Priority Selector in a preset resulted in a configuration file that Halogen could not open.

Links to Logic Input pins configured as selectors on a pasted DR4 (in the Hardware Workspace) responded to changes on the original/source DR4 port.

Audio morphing in the Pager1 and Paging Station PEQ blocks was not working as it was in all the other PEQ blocks. This was causing low-level zipper noise when quickly moving PEQ filters around in the Pager1 and Paging Station blocks on live devices.

When a Web Controls Command Label was toggled to display no text (“Show” was unchecked), the text vanished from Halogen, but still appeared in the URL when web page is displayed.

Using image files that are “read-only” was causing headaches when used in Web Controls.

Within DSP blocks containing graphs (e.g., PEQ, ANC, others), when grabbing movable nodes with the mouse, moving the node outside the bounds of the graph caused the mouse to stop controlling the node.

Added max/min settings and Links to all PEQ gain, frequency and bandwidth controls. This is useful for creating links for remote Tone Controls from DR remotes or iPads (etc.) using the new Web Controls feature.

Added a new Voice Detect DSP block that does lots of cool stuff for live or recorded paging applications, especially when links to physical switches or Ethernet control systems are needed.

Hardware Workspace

Halogen now displays a read-only warning message, when trying to load a configuration file from a read-only folder.

Bug fixes in Halogen 4.0

RaneLink crashed when a router was configured to always return "in use" messages for all ARP requests. This prevented valid link local IP Addresses in HALs which are required to talk to Halogen.

Fixed graphics problems where parts of windows were not fully visible due to Windows magnification settings.

I/O meters were erroneously enabled when RADs were in a mismatched state.

Fixes in Halogen 3.0.1

Fixed the expansion bus link that occasionally dropped when more than 16 expansion units are attached.

Disconnecting a DR while it is in Locate mode caused Halogen to crash.

Sometimes when a device mismatch state exists, meters were not graphically disabled.

Meters were not working for RADs when attached to an EXP1x or EXP3x.

Toggle controls were not displayed on a DR2 or DR3 when switching control mode from Selector to Toggle/Command mode.

Halogen didn't turn off the device locate LED before swapping a device in the hardware workspace.

Known issues in Halogen 3.0.1

In Halogen 3.0 or greater, deleting or adding an input node on a Gain-sharing Auto Mixer in a file created before Halogen 3.0 crashes Halogen. (You chose "backup and update," didn't you?) The simple fix is to delete the entire Gain-sharing Auto Mixer, insert a new one and add the nodes required. This effects only the Gain-sharing Auto Mixer and not the Gain Sharing Matrix Mixer, not the Room Combine block.

When working on configuration files that greatly exceed the 100% Resource value, the delay resources meter can become inaccurate. This does not happen when below 100%.

The Locate indicator in Halogen continues to flash after unplugging the associated hardware device.

Deleting a selector preset sometimes results in none of this preset’s settings being active. Fix by activating any preset in this selector preset.

Added Highlight Wires to visually indicate all wires connected to a selected block(s).

Added Links to the Active indicators in Zones to allow control systems or logic outputs to know what paging zone(s) are active.

Added “View HAL Information” to context menu in Windows file system which indicates the HAL device type (HAL1, HAL2 or HAL3) and the Halogen version number for a Halogen configuration file.

DR1 & DR3 remote LCD Levels now indicate the ratiometric percentage for the current volume setting. 0% for off, 100% for full-tilt boogie.

All toggle checkboxes now use a check mark, rather than an ’x’ to indicate status.

Processing Blocks that contain child blocks now graphically appear with a double outline.

Halogen desktop icon now shows the Halogen version number in the name.

Hardware Workspace

The EXP device’s physical position along the Expansion Bus is now shown.

Bug fixes in Halogen 3.0

Halogen now correctly displays the subnet mask value that is in the HAL. All subnet values were correctly sent to HAL, and hardware and network functionality was not impaired, although the displayed subnet values always appeared as either 0 or 255 in Halogen. Other values could not be altered after initially setting them. (4967)

The Paging Station Scenario list & Room Combinations Selector did not scroll when linked to a read only control (4536 & 4545)

HAL3 front panel Sig/OL LEDs on the Line-Plus Inputs did not illuminate unless a Line-Plus Input block was added to the Processing Map (4140)

The units value (feet or meters) in delay blocks was not pasting into pre-existing delay blocks. (4430)

Bypass all for the feedback suppressor was not shown as a graphical wire on the response graph (it displayed the pre-bypass response).

Adding 32 audio channels to the Distributed Program Bus in a configuration file containing 12 room combine rooms with 11 walls (81 rooms total) took over 4 minutes – now it takes only a few seconds. (4513)

Known issues in Halogen 3.0

In Halogen 3.0 or greater, deleting or adding an input node on a Gain-sharing Auto Mixer in a file created before Halogen 3.0 crashes Halogen. (You chose "backup and update," didn't you?) The simple fix is to delete the entire Gain-sharing Auto Mixer, insert a new one and add the nodes required. This effects only the Gain-sharing Auto Mixer and not the Gain Sharing Matrix Mixer, not the Room Combine block.

Disconnecting a DR while it is in Locate mode causes Halogen to crash.

Sometimes when a device mismatch state exists, meters are not graphically disabled.

When working on configuration files that greatly exceed the 100% Resource value, the delay resources meter can become inaccurate. This does not happen when below 100%.

The Locate indicator in Halogen continues to flash after unplugging the associated hardware device.

Deleting a selector preset sometimes results in none of this preset’s settings being active. Fix by activating any preset in this selector preset.

Added support in a single Room Combine Processor for 12 rooms containing 11 walls maximum.

Exposed each Room Processor’s Level and Selector Links in the Room Processors Tab to avoid having to open so many dialogs when dragging room links together.

If you need any of the following characters, Halogen 2.0 now has them: á, é, í, ó, ú, ý, ø, ö, ø, å, æ, ä, ö, à, è, ñ, and many more. Any Latin character is available in all editable names in the Halogen software and in the LCD screens for DR1, DR2 and DR3.

Added multi-node wiring. Auto-create multiple wires between blocks by first selecting the starting nodes, clicking on any of them to start wiring, and then hovering over the ending block(s) or node(s). Wires are auto-created between the selected starting nodes and available nodes on the ending block(s).

Align and/or evenly distribute a group of blocks by selecting the blocks and then applying the desired alignment function from the Processing Workspace Toolbar or Right-click: Align left, right, top, bottom, plus horizontal and vertical spacing distribution.

Added port indicators to upper left title bar in I/O blocks on Processing Map. These indicators show the hardware path as well as hardware match/mismatch information for RAD I/O blocks.

Double-click any I/O or Host Processing icon in the palette to place it on the Processing Workspace.

Read-only controls (physical switches, pots, relays…) can now be overridden in software for behavior verification, then canceling Override returns settings to physical controls’ current state.

Paging Manager now has a single Check All box to assign all Zones to a Scenario or all Scenarios to a paging Station.

Added Ctrl+Tab shortcut key combination to move focus to the next open property window. Shift+Ctrl+Tab moves backward through open property windows.

Added enhanced multi-select of processing blocks using any combination of control clicking and dragging a selection window.

Added a Preference to allow wires to appear curved or rounded in the Processing Workspace.

Added ability to paste the Feedback Suppressor’s filters into a PEQ block as long as both blocks contain the same number of filters. This may be useful in systems where the mics and loudspeakers never move and the temperature is stable.

Added a Preset drag target to the Link Properties dialog to permit storing Links to Presets without doing so from the All Links dialog.

Added the ability to duplicate existing Presets. Thus speeding the workflow when creating many, slightly different presets contain many of the same settings.

Hardware Workspace

Enhanced the Device Mismatch indicators to be more descriptive: Device Mismatch (device configured is not the device HAL detected); Device Missing (device configured but none detected); Device Unexpected (no device configured, but a device is detected).

Bug fixes in Halogen 2.0

The audio taper behavior of full-range Level blocks was in the Twilight Zone (erroneous). It’s back to reality. (4040)

Windows XP and Windows 7 no longer require two reboots while installing Halogen. We found a work around to this Microsoft-created issue. (3995)

Known issues in Halogen 2.0

The Feedback Suppressor’s response graph does not show a flat “wire” response when Bypass All is checked – although the block is bypassed. (4528)

Installing Halogen from the DVD in the HAL box, then re-installing Halogen form Rane’s website, causes an error. Work around is to manually uninstall Halogen. (4565)

Using many Distributed Program Bus (DPB) channels along with many room combine processors – such as 12 rooms, 10 walls – can take several minutes for Halogen to automatically generate the over 325,000 possible I/O and routing permutations. Be patient. We’re working on improving this in a future release. (4513)

The Pager1 read-only Talk button in a connected HAL is not override-able in Halogen, but it should be. (4442)

Changing a Distance Delay block's Distance value, then changing the Units value, causes copied then pasted Distance Delay blocks to have the wrong the settings. (4430)

Parent blocks now turn red when child block(s) are muted. Added to Pager Input and Paging Station (3175)

When DHCP is enabled on a PC on a network with no DHCP server, HAL would inconveniently disconnect shortly after a new link-local address is added by Halogen. Now, preexisting link-local addresses in the PC are used by Halogen rather than Halogen always adding a new one (3994)

Level controls did not display correctly after activating a preset that changed the min/max values (3970)

Sometimes wires appear dotted rather than solid after moving old blocks only horizontally and wiring to just dropped new blocks (4041)

Some blocks’ ‘rainbow’ slider controls were jerky while being adjusted (4037 & 4038)

After a save, close and file reopen, Delay and Level blocks erroneously permitted deleting only input nodes, when both input and output nodes should always be deleted together on these blocks. (4010)

After adding a new DR, then viewing the Processing workspace, then returning to the Hardware workspace and changing the DR to a RAD, the RAD was not being shown in the Processing workspace (4036)

Corrected some filename typos in the help and readme files that pointed to the 3rd-party help documents (3971 & 3972)

Duck block ‘ducked’ indicator was turning off at the wrong time. Now it turns off after the hold time, but before ramping begins. (3679)

Multiple DR windows were opening from the Link dialog after moving or swapping EXPs that contain linked DRs. (3963)

The meter server between HAL & Halogen is much more robust now. Added more automatic retries and user warnings are displayed if speed bumps are encountered (3960 & 4015)

Some email clients were hanging Halogen when “Send email to Rane” was clicked (4018)

Extended the time before deleting troubleshooting log files from 2 days to 2 weeks (4021)

Sometimes rapidly changing the max delay (like a two year old would) in Distance or Video delay block caused Halogen unhappiness (4039)

Two bugs that created corrupted files when Halogen upgraded much older Halogen files were fixed (3961 & 4010)

Known issues in Halogen 1.2.0

If a Windows XP or Windows 7 computer does not have Microsoft .NET 4.0 installed, the Halogen installer does install/update it. But during installation, two reboots are required: one after the .NET Client installs and a second reboot after the .NET Framework installs. We know, what a pain in the tush. And you thought Microsoft cared about your time, or at least moved on from requiring reboots during installs. Take the added time to think happy thoughts – such as your favorite dessert or gelato flavor.

The Zone Processor Priority Selector settings are lost or improperly reset when closing and reopening Halogen or repowering HAL. The fix is to drag and configure the Distributed Program Bus (DPB) first, then drag on the Zone Processors.

To fix this:

1. Delete the DPB and the Zone Processor blocks.
2. Add the DPB and configure the inputs.
3. Add the Zone Processor(s) and configure the selectors.
4. Save the config and open it – all will be well.

Allows complete development and 100% testing of control systems with only Halogen software – no hardware required for developers.

All HAL/Halogen linkable Level controls are automatically and quietly ramped in the DSP, thus programmers can send fast and/or drastic level value changes without worrying about audio pops and burps.

Enter a subnet mask for HAL1’s static IP Address in the live HAL1 properties dialog.

Enter a default gateway for a HAL1 in the live HAL1 properties dialog.

Disallow disabling of DHCP on a HAL when connected to that HAL's DHCP-assigned address. If the DHCP address is being used for the connection between Halogen and HAL, the user is prevented from turning off DHCP and a message box appears to tell them this and why.

Open property dialogs near blocks, devices, or hyperlinks. When opening property dialogs, Halogen now opens dialogs just below the clicked block, device, or hyperlink (not below the previously opened dialog as in the previous version of Halogen).

Added ‘Close’, ‘Close All’, and ‘Close All But This’ to all dialog context menus – right-click in any title bar.

Hardware Workspace

Temporarily hide open dialogs when dragging from the palette.

Temporarily hide open dialogs when panning or zooming the birdseye view.

Temporarily hide open dialogs when moving or swapping a device in the hardware map.

Right-click context menu in the palette now includes ‘Show All’ and ‘Hide All.’

Added a Help menu item to zip all Halogen log files and allow saving the zip to a directory.

Captures all Halogen and ‘pcops’ log files – this is intended to be done with direction from Rane so users can send zip files to Rane for troubleshooting and analysis.

Drag and drop multiple copies of Host Processing blocks to the Processing map. Hold down any number 1 through 0 while dropping a block, 1 through 10 blocks are added. Number key must be held down while releasing mouse.

Specify number of I/O when dropping a variable I/O Host Processing block. Hold shift down while dropping a variable I/O block - a popup asks how many I/O nodes to add.

Selector, Priority Selector and Router blocks (including those in Zone Processor and Room Processor blocks) show the currently selected node in maroon colored text on the block. On the Priority Selector, the currently selected maroon text on the block does automatically move as higher priority input audio is auto-detected. But the radios buttons in both the property dialog and any linked DR remote(s) continue to show the most recent physically selected input – not the auto-detected priority input.

On I/O blocks, show the physical port number on the Processing map. Hover the mouse over an I/O block in the Processing map, the physical HAL or EXP1 port number appears in the title bar on the upper left corner. Open the dialog to view the full physical path to the device (e.g., which EXP1 in a chain).

When an AM2 mixer(s) is cascaded in the Room Combine block, the physical port number for that AM2’s HAL or EXP1 port is displayed.

Show the number of filters in the PEQ and All-pass filter blocks. The number of filters displays in the block title bar as ‘x n’ where n is the number of filters – e.g., x 6 for 6 filters. The PEQ’s high- and low-cut filters are not included in this value.

The I/O and HW Control palettes show the physical HAL or EXP1 port numbers. The palette title bar for the HAL1 and each EXP1 contains a port position number. This makes it easier to figure out which physical HAL or EXP1 port a device is connected to.

Temporarily hide open dialogs when dragging from I/O and Host Processing palette.

Temporarily hide open dialogs when panning or zooming the birdseye view.

Temporarily hide open dialogs when shift-click panning.

Temporarily hide open dialogs when moving any block or wire.

Auto scroll the Processing map when moving an existing block or wire.

Blocks containing child blocks now contain a right-click context menu that allows opening child block property dialogs without having to open the parent block. A fly out appears showing all child blocks, allowing you to pick one. Applies to Pager1, Paging Station, Zone Processor, and the individual Room Processors in the Room Processors tab (not the parent Room Processor since this would require dozens of fly-out menus).

Added bypass and mute to the right-click context menu (for blocks with bypass/mute). When multiple blocks are selected, all blocks must support the bypass/mute function and be in the same state for the context menu to appear.

Property dialogs for blocks, presets and linking now display the block’s category colors. A color bar is preset in the property dialog title bar for all processing block, preset, and linking property dialogs. The bar is in the upper left corner, just to the right of the ‘pin’ icon.

Show in software whether or not text fits (left to right) on a DR or Pager1 LCD display. Halogen shows a yellow warning (!) icon next to the LCD edit box when display text won’t fit in the actual LCD display on the given product.

Make it more obvious when a DR executes a Command. The icon for the Command item shown in the DR LCD display flashes more prominently when the user clicks the item (by pressing the DR button).

Slowed down the ‘spin’ rate when using the arrow buttons to adjust DR and Pager1 LCD backlight.

Bug fixes in Halogen 1.1.0

Fixed Non-US English versions of Microsoft Windows installations that were exhibiting problems after dragging a ducker, limiter or gate onto the Processing map. (3751)

After moving or swapping DR remotes on the Hardware workspace, the DR label name(s) and Enable state(s) were being reset to their defaults. This forced names to be reentered after moving or swapping. (3736)

DR remotes were improperly restricted to displaying 16 maximum entries, not the intended 20 max that are now supported by all DR and Pager1 devices. (3838)

The Ctrl-D shortcut key to open the All Presets dialog was not working. (3830)

Deleted nodes of copied Level and Selector blocks were being pasted to new blocks. (3861)

Wiring or moving blocks near the edges of the Processing map did not auto scroll. (2798)

Linking a toggle preset and a toggle control, then changing the link value in the Link window was causing problems. (3854)

The last character in DR or Pager1 LCD display names was sometimes hidden by the scrollbar. (3898)

After deleting a preset that contained a Level block, nodes would no longer Add correctly to that Level block. (3968)

Links to Selector Presets stopped working after reopening configuration file. (3967) Link names were also initially missing in this situation (3966)

The Help file states the maximum number of HAL IP Addresses was 10. But the actual limit is 8 IP Addresses. (3957)

Unplugging the Ethernet cable before a Connection transfer is complete caused Halogen processes to continue running – even after closing Halogen. (3954

HAL was not changing its IP Address after the DHCP server changes its IP range and the HAL DHCP lease expired. (3951)

HAL was accepting DHCP IP Addresses that were already present on the network. Now HAL verifies that the IP Address sent by the DHCP server is not in use. (3946)

HAL was not sending its hostname to the DHCP server (3947)

Leaving a live device’s meters open in Halogen for over 2 weeks, 24/7 eventually caused the meters to stop, requiring a re-launch of the Halogen software to have meters again. (3742)

Known issues in Halogen 1.1.0

If a Windows XP or Windows 7 computer does not have Microsoft .NET 4.0 installed, the Halogen installer does install/update it. But during installation, two reboots are required: one after the .NET Client installs and a second reboot after the .NET Framework installs. We know, what a pain in the butt. And you thought Microsoft cared about your time, or at least moved on from requiring reboots during installs. Take the added time to think happy thoughts – such as your favorite or an upcoming vacation.

Using presets to recall drastic filter changes can cause minor pops in the presence of audio. We’ll be adding filter morphing to the PEQ, Graphic, Cut and Shelf blocks in the next Halogen release to address this.

After dragging a Pager1 to the Processing map, either right-cliking to delete it, or changing the Pager1 to any other RAD, DR or none in the Hardware workspace crashes, then forces Halogen to close. The work around is to first remove/delete the Pager1 from the Processing Map, then delete it or change it in the Hardware workspace.

The Room Processor's Sum block crashes Halogen if you double-click on it. Workaround: Do not double-click the Sum block inside a Room Processor. This block contains no adjustable parameters - so once it's fixed in the upcoming Halogen 1.2, it will not open anyway. Halogen 1.2 is due in late April, 2012 to address all but the Microsoft reboot issue.

Version 1.0.1

Version 1.0.1 contains several minor bug fixes.

Known Issues in Halogen 1.0.1

1. "Non-US English" versions of Windows exhibit problems when dragging blocks onto the Processing Map. We recommend changing the Windows setting that changes the symbol used for "decimal points" from a comma ( , ) to a period ( . ). This temporary workaround fixes the problems until an updated release is available.

The problems encountered are: adding a ducker, gate or limiter block displays an error that corrupts the configuration file. The delay block resources used value is calculated incorrectly. And Level control links and parametric EQ bandwidth values behave incorrectly.

Here's where to find the settings in the German version of Windows. Make these changes, then open Halogen:

German Win 7 Pro N
From the Systemsteuerung, open Region und Sprache
Click on Weitere Einstellungen… the button in the lower right corner of the screen (on the Formate tab)
Replace the ‘,’ in the Dezimaltrennzeichen field with a ‘.’

Windows XP N
Systemsteuerung -> Regions und Sprachoptionen
Click on the Anpassen… button next to the region
Change the dezimaltrennzeichen value to ‘.’ Instead of ‘,’

Windows Vista:
Systemsteuerung -> Regions- und Sprachoptionen
Click on the Dieses Format anpassen… button in the lower right of the dialog
Dezimaltrennzeichen field

2. Halogen will not run with .NET framework 4.0 on Vista SP2. Vista SP1 works fine as do the other versions of Windows we currently support

Control HAL

Halogen Web Controls

Control the Levels, Selectors, Toggles and Commands in any HAL System from any device with a web browser. Halogen 4.0’s Web Controls feature allows creation of custom HTML GUI control screens. Define the quantity of control pages, and the layout, labeling and size of each control, and completely test them using your default web browser from within Halogen.

Access any control page from any browser-enabled device on the network with a HAL device. Just open a browser and type in the customizable IP/webpage address for the HTML page – and bookmark it for easy access. Type in the (optional) 6 digit User Access code, and voilà, the trick, she is done! Control your HAL system wirelessly from one or more tablets, smart phones, laptops or desktop computers. The HAL web server is multi-client, allowing control across many devices and many rooms. You can link Rane’s wired DR remote controls (DR1, DR2 & DR3) and wireless devices and they’ll automatically track each other.

Customers from almost every audio application are asking for “iPad control” and Halogen’s Web Controls is the solution. It is not Apple®-centric — no iTunes® store or app installs required. We’ll save a lot of space on this page by not listing all the possible devices that support web browsers and wireless Ethernet. Besides, the list will update before we know it.

Use any number of devices with a web browser...all tracking each other.

Halogen's Control Page Designer lets you design custom control pages for any size screen.

DR1 Level Remote

The Rane DR1 is a Level Control remote. The LCD display shows the name of the Zone or Group that it is connected to, customizable in Halogen Software. The Level value is also shown, and updated dynamically when it is changed elsewhere, such as in a linked group with multiple Remotes connected. The display has a backlight for readability that turns on when used, then dims after a short time period. The DR1 is available in white, ivory and black.

DR2 Selection Remote

The DR2 offers both Single Selector and List of Toggle / Command behaviors. The LCD display has a backlight for readability that turns on when used, then dims after a short time period. The selection names are customizable in Halogen Software to anything you like. The DR2 is available in white, ivory and black.

DR3 Level and Selection Remote

The DR3 can be programmed three ways:

Single Level & List of Toggles/Commands.

List of Levels for either multizone volume control or input source mixing.

Selector and a Single Level.

The Level value is shown, and updated dynamically when it is changed elsewhere, such as in a linked group with multiple Remotes connected. The LCD display has a backlight for readability that turns on when used, then dims after a short time period. The names are customizable in Halogen Software to anything you like. The DR3 is available in white, ivory and black.

DR4 Logic I/O Expander

8 Logic Inputs, Internal 5V pull-up

8 Logic Outputs for relay drive, LED or logic level output

8 Analog Control ADC inputs for potentiometers

6 IR ports for IR2 wall sensors

Any HAL can have more logic input and output ports with a DR4, which can also add simple analog level and logic I/O controls. The DR4 can add IR2 remotes for wall sensing, enabling automatic sound routing when moveable walls open and close. The DR4 offers eight logic ins and outs, six IR2 ports and eight analog control input ports for pot-on-a-wall level control. Multiple DR4's can connect to Digital Remote Ports on any HAL, up to 300 meters (1,000 feet) away.

DR5 Switch Controller

The DR5 Digital Remote offers additional logic input and output ports, enabling the use of simple analog switch controls in any HAL system. Existing lighted switch panels for room combine applications are easily integrated into a HAL system using the eight switch inputs and eight LEDs outputs on the DR5. Unlike the HAL and DR4 Logic I/O, the DR5 Logic Out is intended to drive the LED indicator on a room combine panel, and is a writable parameter. The DR5 fits in a standard US dual-gang electrical box, or mounts directly near a room combine panel.

DR6 Touchscreen Remote

The DR6 is a fully customizable touchscreen remote for HAL. It supports multiple pages or tabs and any set of levels, toggles, selectors and/or commands. Drag, drop and resize controls any way that’s desired. Use custom background images and logos in full-color on the 7-inch display.

An included wall bracket can mount over U.S. or international electrical boxes, or flush mount the 3/4" thick DR6 with a 2-inch (5 cm) square hole in the wall to accommodate the connector. An optional DS1 desk stand accessory (shown) mounts the DR6 on a horizontal surface. An optional RB1 rack bracket installs a DR6 into a 19" equipment rack.

The included midspan power injector (not PoE) connects shielded CAT 5e (or better) cables between any HAL and the DR6 to deliver communications and the extra power needed for the display. Unlike other Rane DR models which can be 300 meters (1,000 feet) from a HAL, the DR6 must be within 100 meters (300 feet). The power injector can be located anywhere within this distance.

IR2 Infrared Wall Sensors

The Rane IR2R and IR2S are collectively known as an IR2. They work in pairs as an accessory to Rane HAL products. The IR2S sends infrared, the IR2R receives it. They work as a pair to provide an automatic way to sense the position of a movable wall or door. Mounting brackets and screws are included.

A single CAT 5e cable for each door connects the IR2 pair to a dedicated IR Remote port on the rear of a HAL2 or a DR4, which can be up to 300 meters (1000 feet) away. The DR4 connects to any HAL, up to 300 more meters away. Thus, the IR2 can be 600 meters (2,000 feet) away from a HAL.

When mounted on opposite sides of the door, and wired correctly, green indicators on the IR2R and IR2S are always lit. Only when the door is open and the IR2R is receiving infrared from the sender does the IR2R's amber indicator light. Depending on the IR2 mounting height and your eyeglass prescription, these indicators can usually be viewed from the floor. Note that the HAL need not have a configuration loaded in it for the above functionality to be observed. A powered HAL2 or DR4 is sufficient.

For an IR2 remote to control audio, the IR2 requires a connection to a HAL2, or to a DR4 connected to any HAL. In either case, the HAL must be loaded with a suitable configuration. When doors or movable partitions are opened or closed the IR2 automatically detects this, and the audio system reconfigures itself appropriately and automatically.

The IR2 pair will operate up to 1.5 meters (6 feet) apart. The HAL does not automatically check IR2 wiring errors. See the IR2 Data Sheet for details.

Logic Inputs

These inputs are found on the HAL1x, HAL2 and HAL3s. More can be added with the DR4 or DR5 connectable to any HAL. You can configure each of the Logic Input ports in one of three ways: toggle, command, or selector.

The Toggle configuration allows a Toggle command with an on/off switch. You can configure each port type to be either Momentary or Latching.

The Command configuration allows triggering a Command control from an on/off switch, which can link to one or more Command controls such as a Command preset or a linkable button in a processing block property dialog.

The Selector configuration uses either a multi-position switch or a binary switch. You can connect a physical device to any or all of the Logic In ports and configure the ports in Halogen so that they make the desired selection according to the state of the physical device. Wiring details are in the Halogen Software Help. The Selector configuration is not supported by the DR5.

Logic Outputs

These outputs are found on the EXP3x Output Expander for the HAL1x, or on a DR4 that can connect to any HAL. You can configure each of the 8 output ports in one of 2 ways:

Toggle: When a toggle control in the Halogen Control palette is unchecked, HAL sets the corresponding DR4 Logic Out port to logic high (5 V), and when the toggle is checked, it sets the port to logic low (0 V).

Selector: When a selector control in the Halogen Control palette is set to the first selection, HAL sets the corresponding DR4 Logic Out port to logic high (5 V). Conversely, when the selector control is in the second position, HAL sets the port to logic low (0 V).

Analog Control Inputs

These inputs are only found on the DR4 that can connect to any HAL. Each port allows an analog voltage source to control the value of a Level control in the Halogen Control palette. The input range for the port is from 0 V to 5 V, where 0 V corresponds to 0% on the associated Level control and 5 V corresponds to 100%.
Connect a physical linear-taper potentiometer, like the Rane VR2 Volume Remote. The Vc wiper provides the control voltage to the DR4. As you adjust the pot the voltage changes, which in turn changes any linked Level control in Halogen. Another option is the Rane LRS4 Level Recall Switch, providing four predetermined volume levels (may include mute). The LRS4 contains four radio buttons: engaging one button (in, changing to green) causes any of the other three to disengage (out, changing to black).

Relay Outputs

These reed relay ports are found on the HAL1x and HAL2 to signal other devices. A common implementation is to link a relay port to a Toggle control so an end user can change its value. Halogen software contains a checkbox for each relay port. Its value can be included in a preset or link to another control, making it possible to use a preset or control to turn the relay port on or off.

AMX Support Package

The AMX Control Systems Guide, included in the package link below, includes an introduction to using external control systems with HAL. It also discusses an example HAL1x configuration and how to set up an AMX controller and touch panel to communicate with a Halogen/HAL Control Server. In addition, an appendix is included with reference information on the HAL external control message protocol and how to use a telnet client to monitor and troubleshoot the operation of a control system at the message protocol level.

The AMX Support Package is installed with the Halogen software and can be accessed from the Windows Start Menu under Rane Corporation > Halogen > Guides > AMX. If you want to access the files directly they are available on the product DVD or from the Halogen install directory:

Crestron Support Package

The Crestron Control Systems Guide, included in the package link below, includes an introduction to using external control systems with HAL. It also discusses an example HAL1x configuration and how to set up a Crestron controller and virtual touch panel to communicate with a Halogen/HAL Control Server. In addition, an appendix is included with reference information on the HAL external control message protocol and how to use a telnet client to monitor and troubleshoot the operation of a control system at the message protocol level.

The Crestron Support Package is installed with the Halogen software and can be accessed from the Windows Start Menu under Rane Corporation > Halogen > Guides > Crestron. If you want to access the files directly they are available on the product DVD or from the Halogen install directory:

I recently had the pleasure of working on the Hard Rock Casino project as the Crestron programmer, and as you know they had a HAL digital signal processor. Integrating the HAL into my Crestron program was a breeze, it dropped into place seamlessly.
The simple ASCII command protocol makes it easy to understand and implement.
The response from the DSP is also very snappy, so real time feedback is bang on!
Great product, I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to provide an audio solution to both big and small venues.

Stardraw Control Support Package

The Stardraw Control Systems Guide, included in the package link below, includes an introduction to using external control systems with HAL. It also discusses an example HAL1x configuration and an example Stardraw Control application and driver that communicates with a Halogen/HAL Control Server. In addition, an appendix is included with reference information on the HAL external control message protocol and how to use a telnet client to monitor and troubleshoot the operation of a control system at the message protocol level.

HAL1 Example Driver.cs - Stardraw HAL1x driver source code. This is part of the Stardraw
Control Project but is included separately here for reference.

The Stardraw Control Support Package is installed with the Halogen software and can be accessed from the Windows Start Menu under Rane Corporation > Halogen > Guides > Crestron. If you want to access the files directly they are available on the product DVD or from the Halogen install directory:

HAL Applications

Multizone Paging Systems and the PAGER1

This RAD is a mic preamp and a paging zone(s) [Scenario] selector with an integrated push-to-talk switch. Busy, Caution and Ready indicators inform end users when priorities clash.

The PAGER1 accepts any standard gooseneck mic (not included) and has built-in selectable 24 V Phantom Power and a 13 dB pad. It normally sits on a desk or table, and has lockdown features for security.

Distributed Program Bus

Wiring system-wide background music sources into the single Distributed Program Bus automatically wires all music sources to every output zone. The blue Distributed Program Bus label represents bus output and input to blocks.

Paging Station and Zones

Thus, wiring from all page sources through the Paging Manager to all page zones – including rooms that combine – is automatic. The Paging Manager easily maps all page sources to any combination of zones when using the Paging Zone, Emergency Page, Zone Processor and Room Combine Processor blocks.

Room Combining

The Room Combine Processor supports custom wall layouts and auto-activation of independent room processors for each possible physical room as walls open and close. Control linking between Rane's Digital Remotes to wall open/close toggles and room volumes is exquisitely intuitive. Gain-share auto mix mics in combined rooms and separate the mix automatically as walls close. Use Rane's AM2 Automixer to gain-share with both in-room mics and wireless mics when cascaded into a HAL's room combine processor. This means AM2 mixers can be hot-swapped between locations for quick set up for head table discussions. Control links to Digital Remotes also combine and separate automatically as wall states change. No presets required. Easily change signal processing settings as walls open and close, automatically with Rane IR2 Infrared Wall Sensors.

Acoustic Echo Cancellation (AEC) with the EXP7x

The Rane EXP7x Expander for the HAL1x provides 8 channels of full-featured, drag and drop Acoustic Echo Cancellation (AEC). Each channel of AEC can be added to any HAL1x system input and route to any Halogen DSP block, including the gain-sharing automixer, manual mixer, regular Room Combine block, and Conference Room Combine block.
The Rane EXP7x in combination with HAL1x and Halogen software provides a conferencing solution including far more than high-performance AEC.

Processing blocks to enhance the AEC system solution

Revolutionary Conference Room Combine block with intrinsic support for conferencing

Because EXP7x AEC channels are not associated with a particular hardware input, preset recall can re-assign an AEC resource across inputs / rooms as required. Drag and drop AEC supports the typical one-AEC-per-microphone configuration. With optimum acoustics, mic and loudspeaker placement, or with rarely used mics (such as audience mics) it allows mixing more than one mic into a single AEC channel, significantly reducing cost.

What's unique about HAL’s AEC?

Flexible drag-and-drop AEC placement.

Use it where you need it, on any HAL System input.

Re-route AEC resources with presets: re-use AEC across rooms.

Intrinsic support for conferencing with advanced supporting processing blocks:

The Conference Switchboard block supports dynamic routing of Far End Audio sources. This block is useful when more than one room must share a single VoIP or Video Conference resource. It’s also useful when a room needs to access one or more remote rooms on a campus in order to include them in a conference. In some cases a combination of these scenarios is required.

The function of the Conference Switchboard could be accomplished using a standard matrix mixer, but that would require a user to avoid disallowed routing (like 1:1 or 2:2 etc.), and ensure that To and From Far End pairs are correctly wired. This Conference Switchboard simplifies the process.

Conference Room Combine Block

Conferencing in a room combine environment is a complex task without a specialized Room Combine Processor designed to handle room mix, far-end mix and AEC reference routing. Halogen's unique ability to do conferencing within a room combine scenario without complex wiring and routing makes it easy.

Multi-Channel Processing Blocks

In order to get the best performance from an AEC application, the same signal processing parameters used to feed a room loudspeaker must be applied to the AEC reference signal as well. To simplify this process, special blocks that mirror the processing for room and reference channels include:

Tracking Compressor

Tracking ANC

Multi-Channel PEQ

Multi-Channel Shelf.

Halogen provides a highly integrated Conference Room Combine block that greatly simplifies conferencing in a room combine configuration. The block combines room sources, selects a proper reference, and sends audio to appropriate locations as rooms combine. It also provides support for maintaining a proper AEC Reference with local Voice Lift.

This block supports unique mixes from Record and Room outputs. An independent AEC Reference Output is provided for each room to accommodate various microphone locations and unique room processing outside the Conference Room Combine block.
Also inherently provided in this block are support for background music selection and paging per room.

A boardroom application has a number of microphones with overhead sound reinforcement. In this type of system, sound reinforcement is typically strengthened and delay compensation added as a loudspeaker gets further from the original source.

In this scenario, if room acoustics are good, it is possible to use a single AEC processing block for more than one microphone by combining microphones in a common reinforcement zone. The drag-and-drop flexibility of EXP7x AEC blocks lets you add AEC to any Halogen system input.

In the drawing below, the red lines are the daisy-chained CAT5 expansion bus, the blue lines are CAT 5 to RADs from the HAL1x and EXP1x RAD Expander, and the yellow lines are shielded mic cable to analog inputs on the RADs, EXP5x Input Expander, and HAL1x. A complete description of a boardroom application is here.

HAL Configuration Examples

The HAL section in our Applications page has a list of systems sorted by HAL Multiprocessor. Each application is a separate page with a floor plan and wiring diagram. At the bottom you will find an associated Halogen Configuration file to download, which you can modify for your application and save to your computer. This is a great place to see how HAL can be configured for specific systems, and made easier to understand. We recommend you have Halogen installed so you can explore the configuration file.

Reviews

Trademarks

• Heuristic Audio Laboratory (HAL)® • HAL and Halogen are trademarks of Rane Corporation • Dante is a trademark of Audinate Pty Ltd. • Audinate is a registered trademark of Audinate Pty Ltd. • AMX® and the AMX logo are registered trademarks of AMX • Stardraw Control is a trademark of Stardraw.com Ltd. • Crestron® is a registered trademark of Crestron Electronics, Inc. • Decora® is a registered trademark of Leviton • Windows® is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other countries. • Apple, Mac, Macintosh, iTunes, Safari, QuickTime, GarageBand, and OS X are registered trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.

Note: this video was made during the HAL1 days, before the HAL1x expansion bus, before many RADs and DRs existed, before web controls, etc.